Tube-cleaner.



W. S. ELLIOTT.

v TUBE CLEANER. APPLIC ATION FILED OOT. 14, 1908.

2'BHEBTS-SHEET 1.

10 15 I JV 18 v WITNESSES INVENTOR Quin (W R- WILLIAM S. ELLIOTT, OF PITTSBURG, PENNSYLVANIA.

TUBE-GL1] ANER.

No. ceases.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented July 20, 1909.

Application filed October 14:, 1908. Serial. No. 457,668.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that l, WiLLIAM S. ELLIOTT, of Pittsburg, Allegheny county, Pennsylvania, have invented anew and usefulTube- Cleaner, of which the following is a full, clear, and exact description, reference being bad to the accom anying drawings, forming part of this spec' cation, in which Figure 1 is a plan view of one form of cleaner embodying my invention, with the cleaner arms'inth'eir extreme outward position; Fig. 2 is a side view of the same partly in section showing the arms closed; Fig. 3 is an end view with one of the cutter carrying arrns removed; Fi t is a section on the line TV IV of Fig. 2; Fig. 5 is a detail sectional view and Fig. 6 is a view partly in side elevation and partly in section, of a modified form of one of the cleaner arms; Figs. 7 and 8 are detail views of another modification.

My invention has relation to boiler tube cleaners, and is designed to provide a si nple and efficient form of cleaner for this purpose.

More specific objects of my invention are to provide a cleaner head in which the parts are free from rivet connections, and which are so constructed and secured as to ermit any portion of the head to be quic ly removed and replaced when necessary; and also to provide an improved form of cutter in which trackin is prevented.

The nature 0 my invention will be best understood by reference to the accompanying drawings, which will now be described, it being premised, however, that various changes may bemade in the details of construction and arrangement without departing from the s irit and sco e of my invention as defined in tlie appends claims.

Referring to the accompanying drawin s,

the numeral 2 designates the body oft e head, which is provided with a central screwthreaded socket 3, or with any other suitable means for the attachment thereto of a carrying or driving shaft 4. The head is also rovided with a plurality of radial longitudinal slots 5, in which the cleaner arms 6 are pivotally seated. Each of these arms is provided with a longitudinal bore or aperture extending therethrough to receive a pin or shaft 7, these pins or shafts projecting from the forward ends of the arms to form journals for the cutter wheels 8. The wheels 8 are rotatably mounted on these journals between the heads 9 at the forward ends of the pins or shafts, and washers 10 seated between the rear ends of the wheels and the forward ends of the arms. To prevent rotation of these washers they are locked to the arms in. any suitable manner, as by the lugs or projections 11 engaging corresponding recesses in the end portions of the arms. The pins or shafts 7 are removably secured in the arms by means of the transverse pins 12 engagin recesses or de ressions in the shafts 7, an also forming ie trunnions or pivots for the arms, these pins having the ball shaped heads 13 which seat in bearings 14 at opposite sides of each arm. To form these hearings the head is bored out from its rear end at each side of the slots 5, and after the pins 13 have been seated, removable plugs 15 are placed in these bores, in the manner clearly shown in Fig. 5, the inner ends of these plugs seating against the ball heads 13 of the pins. To hold these pins in place and prevent any forward and back play of the pins and arms, a plate 16 is seated against the rear end of the head, being preferably screw-threaded thereon as indicated at 17 in Fig. '2, there being sufficient looseness in these screw threads so that when the end of the shaft 4 is screwed home in the socket 3, this plate 16 will be forced tightly against the eilids of the plugs 15 and thereby secured in ace. p The cutter wheels 8 are of novel character, in that they are provided with two sets of ion itudinally extending cutting edges 18 an 18, in stag ered or alternating relation to each other, the two sets being connected by the oblique cutting edges 19., The cutters preferably have acone taper in both directions from the oblique cutting edges 19, the latter being at that portion of the cutter which has the greatest diameter. The cut ting edges 19 act as cross-cutters, while the cutting edges 18 give a staggered or cleaning out, these several cutting portions effectively reventing any tracking of the cutter wheels. he double tapered form of the cutter wheels facilitates their insertion into and feeding action within the tubes, and also facilitates their withdrawal from the tubes.

By unscrewing the head from the shaft 4, and then unscrewin the plate 16, the plugs 15 can be removed, t ereby allowing any arm to be quickly taken out of the head. The pin 7 can then be readily removed from the arms, and the cutter Wheels removed and renewed. This manner of constructing and assembling the parts, whereby all the rivet connections are'dispensed with, constitutes an important feature of my invention, since it permits the ready renewal and replacement of any of the cutter wheels or of any arm which may become broken. I do not limit myself, however, to the recise means for securing this result which have herein shown and described, since the details thereof may obviousl be changed.

In Fig. 6 I have s own a double form of arm 6*, which is designed to be'centrally pivoted with any suita le head b a pin or trunnion 12 of similar form to t e pms or trunnions 12 before described. The arm is longitudinally bored in opposite directions to receive the pins or shafts 7 each of which carries a cutter wheel 8 at its outer end. The bores for the two ins or shafts 7 are inclined sufficiently to ring the inner ends of said rods'or shafts at op osite sides of the pin or trunnion whereby t e latter serves to secure them both in place. The two rods or shafts may, however, be both on the same side of the pin, as shown in Figs. 7 and 8.

In the form of head shown in Figs. 1 and 2, there are four of the arms 6, two of these arms being shorter than the other two arms in order to cut in a diflerent circular path. I do not, however, limit myself to any particular number or arrangements of the arms,- since any desired number of arms, either of the same or varying lengths, may be em- 10 ed. p Vl 'hat I claim is 1. A cutter for tube cleaners, comprising an integral body having thereon two series of longitudinally extending cutting edges, the cutting edges of the two series being in staggered relation to each other, and the cutting edges of one series being connected to the adjacent cutting edges of the other series. by oblique cross-cutting edges, said cutter being mounted for free rotation; substantially as described.

2. A cutter wheel for tube cleaners, comprising a wheel h'aving a cone taper toward each end and provided with two sets of longitudinally extendin cutting edges in alternating or staggere relation to each other, and oblique cross-cutting edges connecting the two series of longitudinal cutting edges; substantially as described.

A cutter wheel for tube cleaners, com prising a wheel havin a cone taper toward each-end and provide with two sets of longitudmally extending cutting edges in alto-rnating or staggered relation to each other, and oblique cross-cuttin edges connecting the two series of longitudinal cutting ed es, and located at that ortion of the whee of greatest diameter; su stantially as described.

4. In a boiler tube cleaner, a head, an arm seated in'said head and provided'with laterally projecting pivots or trunnions engaging seats in the heads said seats being open at theirrear ends, and means for closing said seats; substantially as described.

5. In a boiler tube cleaner, a head provided with a longitudinal radial slot, having longitudinally extending bearing recesses at opposite sides thereof, a cutter-carrying arm engaging said slot and having a transversely extending pivot pin whose ends bear in the said recesses, and separate means for normally preventing longitudinal movement of the pivot pins in said recesses; substantially as described.

6. In a boiler tube cleaner, a head, an arm ivoted to said head, a rod or shaft extending ongitudinally into said arm, said arm having a pin or pivot which engages the rod or shaft and thereby secures it in the arm, and a cutter wheel journaled on said rod or shaft; substantially as described.

7. In a boiler tube cleaner, a head provided with a longitudinal radial slot, having longitudinally extending bearing recesses at opposite sides'thereof, a cutter carrying arm engaging said slot and having a transversely extending pivot pin Whose ends bear in the said recesses, and removable plugs inserted I in said recesses from their open rear ends and normally holding the pin or pivot against lon itudinal movement; substantially as descri ed. I

8. In a boiler tube cleaner, a head formed with a lurality of longitudinal radial slots, each of which has bearing recesses on opp'osite sides thereof, cutter carrying arms seated in the said slots and having transversely extending pivots which bear in said recesses, removable filling members inserted in' said recesses from the open rear ends thereof, and a retaining member adjacent to the rear ends of the filling members; substantially as described.

9. In a tube cleaner, a pivoted arm, a headed rod or shaft extending into said arm, a pivot for the arm, said pivot also engagin and securing the rod or shaft in the arm, sai pivot being removable to release said rod or shaft, and a cutter wheel journaled on the forward end of said 'rod or shaft between its head and the forward end of the arm; substantially as described.

10. In a tube'cleaner, a centrally. pivoted cutter carrying arm, a separately removable rod or shaft extending into each end portion of said arm, a cutter wheel journaled on the outer end portion of each rod or shaft at opposite ends of the arm, and a pivot in or trunnionv for said arm en aging bot said rods or shafts and norma ly securing them in place; substantially as; described.

11. In a boiler tube cleaner, a head having a plurality of Ion itudinal radial slots there- 1n, said slots each aving pivot seats at opposite sides thereof, said seats extending to, and

opening at, the rear end of the head, a cutterhaving recesses therein engaged by the carrying arm in each of said slots, a transpivot pins, substantially as described. 1; versely extending pivot pin for each of said In testimony whereof, I have hereunto set arms, saidpin extending into said seats at its my hand.

ends, removableretainin meansfornormally v WILLIAM S. ELLIOTT. preventing movement 0 the pivots in said Witnesses: seats, and removable cutter-carrying rods or GEO. B. BLEMING, shafts removably inserted in said arms and H. M. CoRWIN. 

